Abstract: The theme of the present invention is a fuel cell system capable of avoiding a disadvantage caused by the maintaining of a low-efficiency operation to improve the safety of a system operation. The fuel cell system is configured to perform the low-efficiency operation having a large power loss as compared with a usual operation at a predetermined low temperature to raise the temperature of a fuel cell in a short time as compared with the usual operation. The fuel cell system prohibits the low-efficiency operation to execute the usual operation, in a case where predetermined conditions are established at the predetermined low temperature. The predetermined conditions include a time when the generated power of the fuel cell cannot be consumed, a time when this generated power cannot be accumulated in a battery, or a time when the flooding of the fuel cell is generated.

Abstract: Negative active materials for rechargeable lithium batteries are provided. One negative active material includes a metal matrix, and an intermetallic compound including a Si active metal and an additive metal dispersed in the metal matrix. The additive metal may be Ca, Mg, Na, K, Sr, Rb, Ba, Cs, or a combination thereof. The metal matrix may comprise Cu and Al. The negative active material may comprise a X(aM-bSi)—Y(cCu-dAl) material, where X is from about 30 to about 70 wt %, Y is from about 30 to about 70 wt %, X+Y is 100 wt %, a+b is 100 wt %, a is from about 20 to 80 wt %, b is from about 20 to 80 wt %, c+d is 100 wt %, c is from about 80 to about 95 wt %, d is from about 5 to about 20 wt %, and M may be Ca, Mg, Na, K, Sr, Rb, Ba, Cs, or a combination thereof.

Abstract: A positive electrode active material includes: a complex oxide particle containing at least lithium and one or plural transition metals; and a coating layer provided in at least a part of the complex oxide particle, wherein the coating layer contains at least one element M which is different from the principal transition metal constituting the complex oxide particle and which is selected among elements belonging to the Groups 2 to 13, and at least one element X selected among phosphorus (P), silicon (Si) and germanium (Ge), and the element M and the element X show different distribution from each other in the coating layer.

Abstract: A battery capable of ensuring storage characteristics and overcharge characteristics is provided. The battery comprising a cathode, an anode, and an electrolytic solution. The cathode has a cathode current collector and a cathode active material layer provided on the cathode current collector. The cathode active material layer includes an aromatic compound having three or more benzene rings. The electrolytic solution includes at least one of an ester carbonate containing a halogen and an ester carbonate containing an unsaturated bond.

Abstract: According to the method for manufacturing electrode sheets, in a first cutting step, an original sheet, including a belt-shaped metal foil and an electrode material coated thereon in a lengthwise direction to form a plurality of coated portions spaced at a predetermined gap, is cut at a location between the coated portions. In a pressing step, the original sheet strips having been cut in the first cutting step are pressed. In this case, the original sheet strips that are pressed by the rolling device are independent from each other. Therefore, the effect produced in rolling of the coated portions remains within each of the original sheet strips. In addition, distortions occurring in the original sheet strips can be prevented from affecting each other and the occurrence of wrinkles can be inhibited.

Abstract: Various embodiments provide methods for testing a fuel cell interconnect including the steps of providing a fuel cell interconnect and performing a non-destructive test on the fuel cell interconnect comprising at least one of detecting a magnetic response of the interconnect, calculating a volume by optically illuminating the interconnect, detecting an acoustic response of the interconnect, and detecting a thermal response of the interconnect.

Abstract: A recycler for a direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) that uses methanol as a direct feed fuel includes: a housing in which a gas-liquid mixture recovered from a stack is accommodated; a rotor rotatably mounted in the housing; and a motor to rotate the rotor, wherein, when the rotor is rotated by the motor, a phase separation occurs such that liquid in the gas-liquid mixture is collected mainly in an outer region of the housing and gas is collected in the center region of the housing due to the centrifugal force. Accordingly, as it is unnecessary to align a liquid outlet port of the housing with a gravitational direction, the recycler can be employed in a mobile apparatus whose orientation occasionally changes. Also, the recycler does not use a membrane whose performance is rapidly reduced over time so that effective performance can be maintained for a long operation time.

Abstract: The invention relates to a material comprising carbon nanotubes, deposited at the surface of each of which is a substantially continuous film of nanoscale silicon particles, that can be used in negative electrodes for a lithium battery.

Abstract: In a separator member to be joined to an adjacent member adjacent thereto with an adhesive in a cell stacking direction, guide paths are provided to guide, in a specific direction, the adhesive applied to a joint surface of the separator member to be joined to the adjacent member. Thus, excessive adhesive is guided to the guide path, and associated disadvantages during joining can be eliminated.

Abstract: An arrangement for interconnecting electrochemical cells of the type having a membrane electrode assembly (MEA) interposed between an anode gas diffusion layer (208) and a cathode gas diffusion layer (210), and first and second current collectors coupled to said anode and cathode gas diffusion layers (GDL), respectively, wherein the first current collector extends from the anode side of one cell to the cathode side of an adjacent cell, and wherein the cell components are clamped together. The first current collector (206) which is in contact with the anode gas diffusion layer (GDL; 208) of a first electrochemical cell (200a) is configured to be connected to the cathode side of a second, adjacent electrochemical cell (200b) via an inert and electrically conductive member (204b), without being in electrochemical contact with the electrochemically active components of the adjacent cell.

Abstract: Various embodiments include a fuel cell stack including a plurality of fuel cells including a cell anode electrode, a cell electrolyte, and a cell cathode electrode and separated by a plurality of conductive interconnects and at least one material located in a cell anode electrode of the plurality of fuel cells which provides a conductive path between adjacent interconnects when the cell anode electrode between the adjacent interconnects fails.

Abstract: The invention relates to a battery comprising a casing having at least one handle, which is formed integrally with the casing and is at least partially recessed into the upper surface of the casing.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a cooling structure of a lithium ion secondary battery system. The cooling structure of a lithium ion secondary battery system according to the present invention provides cooling channels for lithium battery unit cells accommodated by a laterally partitioned arrangement of main frames, each having a heat radiation part and lattice-shaped paths, and partitioning frames, and allows air, blown by a cooling fan, to cool the lithium battery unit cells while passing through the cooling channels and the lattice-shaped paths. Each of the main frames has a pair of passage slots formed in both sides thereof to allow the air blown by the cooling fan to be directly blown to each accommodated lithium battery unit cell, thus forming each secondary cooling channel communicating with the pair of passage slots.

Abstract: The present invention relates to negative electrode materials for rechargeable lithium batteries and to rechargeable lithium batteries including the same. The negative electrode materials improve the capacity characteristics and cycle-life characteristics of the rechargeable lithium batteries. The negative electrode material includes a negative active material capable of intercalating and deintercalating lithium ions, and the negative active material includes an oxide particle represented by LixMyVzO2+d and having a full width at half maximum of a X-ray diffraction angle (2?) at a (003) plane of 0.2 degrees or more as measured by X-ray diffraction analysis using a CuK?ray.

Abstract: A method and apparatus for making fuel cell components via a roll to roll process are described. Spaced apart apertures are cut in first and second gasket webs that each include adhesives. The first and second gasket webs are transported to a bonding station on conveyers. A membrane web that includes at least an electrolyte membrane is also transported to the bonding station. At the bonding station, a gasketed membrane web is formed by attaching the first and second gasket webs to the membrane web. The first gasket web is attached to a first surface of the membrane web via the adhesive layer of the first gasket web. The second gasket web is attached to a second surface of the membrane web via the adhesive layer of the second gasket web.

Abstract: Provided is a fuel cell having improved ion conductivity in the catalyst layer. The catalyst layer includes a catalytic metal, a carbon particle, and an ion exchanger. The catalytic metal is carried on the carbon particle. The ion exchanger includes a first functional group capable of being adsorbed or bound to the catalytic metal, and a second functional group providing the ion conductivity. The ion exchanger is adsorbed or bound to the catalytic metal via the first functional group. The bond between the catalytic metal and the ion exchanger includes a covalent bond, a coordinate bond or an ion bond.

Abstract: A lithium microbattery formed by a stack of thin layers on a substrate which comprises two current collectors, a positive electrode, a solid electrolyte layer, a negative electrode and an encapsulating layer. The encapsulating layer is formed by a protective layer made from polymer material on which a barrier layer is arranged. The protective layer comprises a copolymer formed from a homogeneous mixture of at least two photopolymerizable precursor materials, respectively acrylate-based and epoxide-based.

Abstract: An electrode assembly and a secondary battery including the same. The electrode assembly is constructed with a positive electrode plate including a positive electrode coating portion, a negative electrode plate including a negative electrode coating portion, a separator interposed between the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate, and at least one mesh layer disposed on at least one of the positive electrode plate and the negative electrode plate. The mesh layer is wider than either the positive electrode coating portion or the negative electrode coating portion to prevent a detachment of either the positive electrode coating portion or the negative electrode coating portion. Since the mesh layer prevents the detachment of the electrode coating portions when subjected to an external impact, it is possible to improve the stability and reliability of a battery.

Abstract: A battery pack for use in a vehicle may comprise battery cells, with each of the battery cells including a main body and a foil cell tab extending from the main body, with the battery cells arranged into a first set and a second set; an interconnect having a first leg, a second leg, and a bridge connecting the legs; first weld locations securing the foil cell tabs of the first set of battery cells to the first leg; and second weld locations securing the foil cell tabs of the second set of battery cells to the second leg. The foil cell tabs or the legs of the interconnect or both may include relief slots extending between the weld locations. Also, the thickness of a set of the tabs may be equal to the thickness of the leg to which they are welded.

Abstract: A battery pack for an electric power tool has a housing and a housing cover that closes off the housing. Battery cells are arranged in the housing and electrically conductingly connected to one another. An electronic circuit for monitoring operating parameters of the battery cells is provided wherein the electronic circuit is mounted on a circuit board and is arranged in the housing. The housing cover has an inner side facing the battery cells. The inner side has a receptacle that is delimited by an outer receptacle rim. The circuit board is received in the receptacle and is spaced from a bottom of the receptacle so that a filling space is provided between circuit board, bottom of the receptacle, and the receptacle rim. A cured potting compound fills out the filling space.